304 Dr. Priestlky's Experiments and Ohfervations 



from each otlicr. Indeed the pieces of malleable iron adhered 

 together after the experiment, but by no means fo firmly. 



Cafl: iron anneitled (by being kept red-hot in charcoal) is 

 remarkably dillerent from the caft iron which has not under- 

 gone that operation, efpeclallj in its being, to an extraordinary 

 degree, more foluble in acids. With the turnings of annealed 

 call iron I made tlie following experiment. From 960 grains of 

 this iron, and with the lofs of 480 grains of water, I got 870 

 ounce meaiares of inflammable air, and tranfmitting fleam 

 through them a lecond time, I got 150 ounce meafures more. 

 The iron had then gained 246 grains in weight, and the pieces 

 adhered firmly together ; but being thin they were eafily broken 

 and got out of the tube, whereas it had required a long time, 

 and a (liarp fteel inftrument, to clear the tube of the caft-iron 

 nails. 



Having got water from the fcales of iron and of copper fatu- 

 rated with dephlogift Icated air, by heating them in inflammable 

 air, it occurred to me to make the fame experiment with prcdi- 

 pitate 'per fe^ and I found, that the moment that the focus of 

 the lens fell upon this fubflance the mercury began to revive, 

 the inflammable air rapidly difappeared, and water was formed 

 on the fides of the veffel in which the experiment was made. For 

 want of a better fun, I could not afcertain every circumfiiance 

 relating to this procefs ; but what I did feemed to afford a 

 fufficient proof that mercury contains phlogifton, and that it is 

 not revived by the mere expulfion of dephlogifticated air, as 

 M. Lavoisier fuppofes ; efpecially as ?w^.vW ^/r was found in 

 what remained of the inflammable air. In one of thefe expe- 

 riments 4.5 ounce meafures of inflammable air had difappeared, 

 and 1.6 ounce meafure remained ; and this appeared to contain 

 fome dephlogiflicated air' mixed with the inflammable. 



4 Willing 



